You can be approved for Social Security Disability benefits for anxiety disorders in Minnesota. Anxiety itself can be normal under severe stress. However, anxiety disorders reflect the idea that it does not go away when it should and it reappears when it shouldn’t.
Anxiety disorders can take different forms. Some cause motor tension, hyperactivity, apprehensive expectation, or hypervigilance. Some involve a persistent, irrational fear of something that it you feel you must avoid it. Anxiety disorders can also prompt recurrent, severe panic attacks from intense fear. Another type of anxiety disorder is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This is essentially when your mind repeatedly relives the stress of a traumatic event. Whatever form it takes, anxiety can stop whatever you are doing wherever you are.
Social Security evaluates your anxiety disorder based on how severe it is and how it affects your ability to work. Social Security disability rules require your anxiety disorder to be documented by medical evidence consisting of symptoms, signs, and in most cases, psychological testing. For this reason, it is extremely important that you treat for your anxiety disorder and maintain a “paper trail” for Social Security to evaluate. Ironically, our legal experience has found that anxiety disorders can cause our clients to avoid treatment. If this happens enough, we cannot prove the need for treatment that does not occur.
The severity of your anxiety condition will be measured by how your anxiety affects your activities of daily living, social functioning and concentration. Activities of daily living include things such as caring for yourself, shopping, cooking, cleaning, etc. Social functioning focuses on your ability to interact appropriately and effectively on a daily basis with other people. Concentration refers to your ability to keep your attention focused long enough to complete tasks usually found in work settings.
As with many conditions, anxiety disorders can vary over time. As a result, proper evaluation of a social security disability claim requires an evaluation of your longitudinal symptoms. Regular and consistent treatment patches these irregular seams into whole cloth.
Anxiety disorders in Social Security disability claims can be complex and difficult to understand.
